The riveting remarks of Jamie Dimon

Nobody ever accused J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon of being deferential, not even with the U.S. government. Even as J.P. Morgan
JPM, +1.97%
wades through a swamp of federal charges and fines, Dimon is still known as the bank CEO willing to speak his mind when others want to fly under the radar.

To some, he’s the executive who runs a bank that is finally getting its reckoning, such as November’s $13 billion deal with the Justice Department to settle allegations that the bank misled investors about mortgages it bundled and sold in the run-up to the financial crisis. To others, he’s the guy being unfairly singled out by the government because he’s so bold as to point out its shortcomings. Here, in Dimon’s own words, a few of the statements drawing the spotlight. — Christina Rexrode

At left, Dimon speaks at the Institute of International Finance Annual Membership Meeting in Washington, D.C. on Oct. 12.

Dimon says in a conference call that the bank has “the full right” to “go after the receiver” for certain claims, “and we intend to do it.”

“But we’re very patient. … And if it takes five years, we’re fine with that.”

Getty Images

Slide 3 of 12

Aug. 12: New York Magazine publishes an interview where Dimon is asked if he regrets being such an outspoken defender of the banking industry.

“Everyone is afraid of retaliation and retribution. We recently had an event with a hundred small bankers here, and 85% of them said they can’t challenge the regulation because of the potential retribution. That’s a terrible thing. OK? This is not the Soviet Union. This is the United States of America. That’s what I remember. Guess what — it’s a free…country.”

At left: Dimon testifies before a Senate Banking Committee hearing on Capitol Hill June 13, 2012.

Getty Images

Slide 4 of 12

June 13, 2012: Dimon, testifying to the Senate about the London Whale trading loss, is contrite on many topics. (He calls the trading loss “something I cannot publicly defend,” for example.) But he also says he doesn’t know if Dodd-Frank has made the financial system safer, and criticizes Congress for not passing the Simpson-Bowles financial plan.

“If we had done something remotely like Simpson-Bowles, in my opinion you would have reduced uncertainty about taxes. You would have increased confidence in America. You would have shown a real fix of the long-term fiscal problem.…And we missed an opportunity to do it. I do think it helped cause a downturn last year.”

At left, Dimon testifies before the House Financial Services Committee on Capitol Hill June 19, 2012. in Washington, D.C.

photo by Jurvetson/flickr

Slide 5 of 12

May 11, 2012: “Meet the Press” tapes an interview with Dimon just after the bank releases details on the London Whale loss. David Gregory mentions how Dimon supported Obama in 2008 and asks if he’s still a Democrat.

“I would call myself a barely Democrat, at this point.…I’ve gotten disturbed at the…anti-business behavior, the sentiment, the attacks on work ethic and successful people. And I think it’s very counterproductive.”

At left, Dimon at the World Economic Forum.

Reuters

Slide 6 of 12

April 13, 2012: Dimon, on an earnings call, dismisses the London Whale trade: “It’s a complete tempest in a teapot.”

At left, former J.P. Morgan employee Javier Martin-Artajo (center), indicted by a U.S. grand jury in relation to the bank's London Whale trading scandal, leaves Spain's High Court in Madrid Nov. 15.

Reuters

Slide 7 of 12

Feb. 13, 2012: Dimon, in an interview with Fox Business Network, implies that the Volcker rule would “destroy” U.S. capital markets.

“Paul Volcker, by his own admission, has said he doesn’t understand capital markets. Honestly, he has proven that to me.”

At left, the headquarters of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co in New York.

World Economic Forum/Wikipedia

Slide 8 of 12

Dec. 7, 2011: Dimon speaks at the Goldman Sachs U.S. Financial Services Conference the day after President Obama gives a speech blaming “the breathtaking greed of a few” for the financial crisis.

“Acting like everyone who has been successful is bad, and because you are rich you are bad — I don’t understand it, I don’t get it. It is what it is. J.P. Morgan will be here for 100 years; that’s how we’re managing the joint.”

Reuters

Slide 9 of 12

Dec. 7, 2011, take 2: This was also a few months after Warren Buffett wrote a New York Times editorial saying the superrich should pay more in taxes.

“Warren Buffett gets mostly dividends and interest income, which is why it’s 17%. But most of us wage earners, OK, are paying 39.6%. … I don’t mind paying 50% and just like President Obama I would love to lift up the poor, the impoverished, the inner-city school kids. But we still want a meritocracy.”

At left, a trader at the J.P. Morgan stall on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, Nov. 19.

Reuters

Slide 10 of 12

June 7, 2011: Dimon attends a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, and during a question-and-answer session, asks Bernanke if the Fed has considered that heavy new regulation could hurt the banks so much that it hurts the economy.

“Has anyone bothered to study the cumulative effect of these things, and do you have the fear, like I do, that when we look back…that they will be the reason it took so long that our banks, our credit, our businesses and most important our job creation started going again? Is this holding us back at this point?”

At left, U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke

Reuters

Slide 11 of 12

Jan. 29, 2009: Dimon went to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, while bank stocks were plunging as rumors buzzed that U.S. banks might be nationalized. According to the Daily Telegraph and the Evening Standard in London, he was quoted as saying: “J.P. Morgan would be fine if we stopped talking about the damn nationalization of banks. We’ve got plenty of capital.”

Reuters

Slide 12 of 12

Jan. 29, 2009: Dimon went to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, while bank stocks were plunging as rumors buzzed that U.S. banks might be nationalized. According to the Daily Telegraph and the Evening Standard in London, he was quoted as saying: “J.P. Morgan would be fine if we stopped talking about the damn nationalization of banks. We’ve got plenty of capital.”

Company

Dow Jones Network

Intraday Data provided by FACTSET and subject to terms of use.
Historical and current end-of-day data provided by FACTSET.
All quotes are in local exchange time.
Real-time last sale data for U.S. stock quotes reflect trades reported through Nasdaq only.
Intraday data delayed at least 15 minutes or per exchange requirements.